Bangkok: At least 224 people have died in flooding in Thailand since mid-July and water has inundated the 400-year-old Chai Wattanaram temple in the ancient city of Ayutthaya, a World Heritage Site, officials said yesterday.

The temple is by the Chao Phraya river, which flows down to the capital, Bangkok, around 105km to the south.

"The water level is now up to 1.5 metres and 150 soldiers are deployed in the area to fix the embankment," said Wittaya Pewpong, governor of Ayutthaya province.

He said more than 200 of the 500 ancient temples in the province had been affected by floods.

Thailand has been hit by massive flooding caused by a tropical storm followed by seasonal monsoon rains, which usually fall from August to October.

Flood damage

Culture Minister Sukumol Kunplome put the damage to historical sites around the country at least 100 million baht (Dh11.7 million).

Flooding has also affected Bangkok, which sits only two metres above sea level. The Chao Phraya river has overflowed into roads in some areas, although the authorities have reinforced its banks to prevent serious flooding.

Several trains to the north had been suspended because of the flooding, the Department of Disaster Prevention and Mitigation said.

Nearly 1.2 million hectares of farmland was under water and the Meteorological Department has warned of more heavy rain in many parts of the country over the next few days.

The government has approved at least 8 billion baht in compensation for farmers and other people affected by floods.

In neighbouring Cambodia, 164 people have died in floods since August 13.

Keo Vy, deputy information director of the Cambodian National Disaster Management Committee, said more than 215,000 families had been displaced while roads, bridges and dikes had been destroyed.

"Affected people are facing the challenge of a lack of food," he said.

More than 300,000 hectares of farmland was under water, he added.

A parent's nightmare

Strange thoughts came to my mind sitting in the office about my children who were trapped in flood waters in Hagonoy, a town in Bulacan province of the Philippines with whom I last spoke on September 30.

Like hundreds of people, my children — aged 10, 9 and 2 — were trapped in floods after a powerful typhoon Nesat struck the east coast of the country.

The situation worsened in Hagonoy when major dams opened flood gates to release water. With no electricity and with phone lines dead, I couldn't reach my children or their guardians — my mother-in-law and sister-in-law.

My parents also travelled immediately to rescue my children, but they were not allowed to enter the town since it was half submerged.

However, my brother found them and moved them safely to my mother's place.

Later, listening to my daughter over the phone, my eyes welled up with tears when she told me how they had been eating noodles for two days and how she wished we were there beside them. She also expressed fears over how she thought we would not be together this Christmas.

— Cesar Valondo, Staff Reporter